Band saw machines can be roughly classified into “Type 1 to Type 3” on the basis of the installation position of the main body vise device for fixedly clamping a workpiece relative to the band saw blade.
Here, the feeding of a material W to a cutting place by a material feeding vise device 103 is likened to the flow of a river from upstream to downstream. In “Type 1” whose outline is shown in FIG. 1, a main body vise device 101 is disposed in a place upstream of and close to a band saw blade BL guided by saw blade guides 105l, 105r (for example, Patent Document 1). Incidentally, in FIGS. 2, 3 explaining the outlines of “Types 2, 3” given below, the same components as those of “Type 1” will be denoted by the same reference numerals. Descriptions for such components will be omitted.
In “Type 2” whose outline is shown in FIG. 2, the main body vise device 101 is disposed in a place downstream of and close to the band saw blade BL (for example, Patent Document 2).
“Type 3” whose outline is shown in FIG. 2 is what is termed as a “divided vise,” in which the band saw blade BL can run in the middle of the main body vise device 101, and in which the main body vise device 101 is disposed across the band saw blade BL in the upstream and downstream directions (for example, Patent Document 3).
To put it in more detail, the main body vise device 101 has a main body vise body 102, which is movable in the Y-axis direction, on a main body vise bed 100. This main body vise body 102 is integrally provided with: a movable vise jaw 101u upstream of the band saw blade BL; and a movable vise jaw 101d downstream of the band saw blade BL. The main body vise body 102 is provided to be movable with the movable vise jaws 101u, 101d by means of a main body vise cylinder 104 in a direction (the Y-axis direction) orthogonal to a material feeding direction (the X-axis direction). In addition, the main body vise bed 100 includes upstream fixed vise jaws 107u, 107d which are opposed to the movable vise jaws 101u, 101d. 
Between the movable vise jaws 101u, 101d and the fixed vise jaws 107u, 107d, there are provided grooves 106, 108 in which the band saw blade BL can run, and spaces which the saw blade guides 105l, 105r can enter. Thereby, the band saw blade BL can run in the Y-axis direction in the middle of the main body vise device 101.
Each of aforementioned Types 1, 2 has advantages and disadvantages. For example, Type 1 can be used for various purposes, is advantageous to bundle cutting, and allows easy introduction of an automated system including an unloading device. However, after cutting the product, the product remains unclamped in a free state, and Type 1 may damage blade tips of the band saw blade by the interference between the product and the band saw blade BL when lifting the band saw blade BL.
On the other hand, Type 2 has an advantage that the remaining material is shorter in length than the remaining material (L1 plus a clamping margin of the material feeding vise) in Type 1. However, Type 2 is disadvantageous to buddle cutting compared to Type 1. To put it specifically, when automatically operated, the material feeding vise device always needs to clamp materials W by returning to the retreat end on the upstream side before finishing cutting the materials W. Otherwise, a bundle of materials, which is the materials W, will come apart from each other simultaneously with the end of the cutting operation.